All Shook Up
by Ariadne Eurydice
Summary: My hand slipped.. oops. Cilan's company is going bottom up, a party is thrown the night before the signing. Ash is a simple receptionist, but after tonight his job becomes so much more than that. Comashipping, Pokémon Fankids
1. Chapter 1

"Make him happy." Cilan's usual kind tone now cold, like ice. Ash flinched at the heat from Cilan's breath against his ear; the man's grip on his arm almost painful. "We need this deal to go though. Anything he wants, you do. Do you understand?"

The man that he was speaking about stood across the room, chatting with a woman who Ash recognized as the lawyer Cress had hired to help see the deal through. Ash nodded slowly as the grip on his arm increased, "Yes sir." He wondered if Cilan could tell that he was terrified.

"Good. Don't disappoint me." Was Ash's only response as his arm was let go and he was nudged in the direction of the man. He was tall, long lilac hair and handsome with hard eyes, high cheekbones and a sharp jaw. An aura around him that seemed to set him apart from everyone else. Just by looking at him, Ash knew this man wasn't someone who was to be messed with.

And if anyone was asking Ash, he certainly didn't want to be the one tasked with seducing him to sign a few papers. Not that Cilan or his brothers would have cared or asked for Ash's opinion. "What's his name?" He looked up at Cilan, who had a sweet smile on his face.

"You will refer to him as Mr. Weiss, who I'll remind you, can be a major asset to this company. You know, the company that pays you, helps you pay your bills and feeds your family. My company." Cilan shook his glass of wine as he turned to Ash. "Speaking of... how's your daughter? I remember you taking a few days off last week because she got sick. Good thing you have insurance, you know, that me and my brothers provide."

For a second Ash felt like he couldn't breathe as he stared up at Cilan in disbelief. After realizing that Cilan was waiting for an answer he nodded his head. "She's fine. Just a side effect of her last round of shots.."

"That's good. Now uh, you wouldn't mind going over there now would you?" He motioned again to Mr. Weiss. "Because if this ends up failing, or someone backs out, cuts will be made. And it's nothing personal but if it's between paying you and for your benefits or keeping my money, guess which option I'm going to choose."

Ash finished his coke and handed his cup off, the message clear enough for him. "No, of course not." He smiled at Cilan as he walked away but his heart was beating a mile a minute as he made his way over to the man. He tugged at his sleeves nervously as he got closer, because either Ash was shrinking, or the man was taller and bigger than he looked. Ash was sure it was the latter.

The woman he'd been speaking to looked in his direction as Ash slowly walked up to the man, who turned to him to see what had piqued her interest, a drink in his hand and a emotionless stare on his face. "Excuse me Mr. Weiss, I don't mean to interrupt your conversation." Ash began, looking between the woman and his guest. "The party is almost over, I wanted to let you know that I'll accompany you to your room. Courtesy of the Griffith Brothers."

The man stared at him, giving Ash a once over that made the boy shiver. He didn't have to be a mind reader to know that the man was undressing him with his eyes. He turned and said his goodbye to the woman, who just smiled and went to find another drink. "Lead the way."

"Follow me." Ash nodded and turned to led him out of the sitting room and up the stairs towards the wing that had all of the bedrooms. Ash caught a scared glimpse from one of his female coworkers, who was opening a room for the man she'd been assigned to. He knew exactly how she was feeling.

Ash opened the door to the room and allowed his guest to enter first, drink still in hand as he walked in, Ash close behind.

The lock was quietly turned as Ash faced the man, who now sat at the edge of the bed, finishing off his drink. "May I know your name?" Mr. Weiss asked as Ash held out his hand for the empty cup, taking it from the man.

Ash fiddled with the cup for a second. "Ash. My name is Ash." He put the cup down, making sure there was a coaster beneath it, as it still had ice in it. "Can.. can I know yours?" When he turned back from the table, the man was less than a foot from him, hovering over Ash in a way that made his breath catch. Cilan's words played over and over in his head as the man stared down at him, a rough hand cupping his face.

"Paul." Mr. Weiss answered, his deep voice sent shivers up his spine as Ash leaned up and pressed a long, sweet kiss to the man's lips. He tasted like alcohol, and Ash had to stop himself from grimacing as Paul kissed him roughly, one hand in his hair and the other trailing it's way down the fitted suit that Cress had tailored for him.

When Ash was lifted in the air he let out a soft noise of surprise, thighs spread as Paul's strong arm wrapped around him. Paul broke the kiss as he laid Ash down on the bed, Ash had to admit, he was a good kisser. And the way the man's body moved on top of him, Ash didn't want to stop. He leaned up and kissed Paul again, lips tingling as a rough finger rubbed against his cheek. The kiss ended, his face hovering over Ash's, hands working at the buttons of his own shirt.

Ash felt his face burning, slowly removing his coat, and then working at the buttons on his wrists while he kicked off his shoes.

Soon enough, Ash was laid bare, the soft fabric of Paul's suit sliding over his skin as he was kissed. "Have you done this before?" Ash was asked as said man pulled away, slowly working at taking off his clothes.

"Yes." Ash answered him, no was the real answer. Yes, that he'd had sex before, no that it had been with another man. He'd liked other men, of course, but had never acted on it. For a second Ash's mind wandered to the young daughter, his only girl, waiting for him at home, his mother watching over her. His sexual experiences with women hadn't been good ones, his baby though, she was the only good thing to come out of it..

He'd never put much thought into how he wanted his first time with another man to go but Ash knew he didn't want it to be with a complete stranger- especially when the stranger was in a place of power. When it was expected of him from three men who could for all intents and purposes, make his life hell. The thought of not being able to provide for her made him want to hurl. But even as Ash thought about how much he didn't want this, to resort to this, his body reacted like an eager teen to the hungry, almost animal way Paul stared at him as he finished undressing. He stood at the edge of bed. "Good."

Ash's body went still as the man pulled him towards the edge of the bed, bottle of lube laid next to him. He gasped softly when Paul pressed a wet finger inside of him, smiling down at Ash when his opening sucked him right in. "How many are you usually able to fit?" Another was pressed in, searching for Ash's prostate.

"Three." Ash breathed out as he adjusted himself to the feeling of someone else's hand inside of him. He could feel every movement Paul made with his wrist as the man added another finger, stretching Ash out. He grinned when Ash jumped, fingers gently rubbing over his prostate. Ash moaned as he rocked his hips against the fingers, and whimpered when they were pulled out of him.

His breath hitched and tears welled in his eyes when he was kissed, his partner's large member pressed inside, stretching him out farther than Ash would have ever been able to do. The pained gasp Ash made sounded enough like a gasp of pleasure, causing Paul to move, breathing heavily into Ash's mouth as he rocked himself in and out of Ash.

Ash felt as if he was being split in half, holding on desperately as he whined, every thrust was enough to knock the wind out of him. He moved himself gently, soft kisses and Cilan's words keeping him grounded in the moment. A hard grip on his hips kept him still and he opened his eyes to see Paul staring back at him with lidded eyes. He moaned quietly as the sound of their hips meeting filled the room, his partner grunting out words of praise while he pressed Ash down into the bed.

And then suddenly Paul was gone. Not gone, but had pulled away. Ash sat up on his elbows as his partner looked at him, applying more lube to his swollen cock and he yelped when he was suddenly flipped over, a large hand holding down his head as he was entered again.

"Tell me, the brothers really thought that sex was going to steer the minds of the clients? They really believed this would be a good idea..." Paul's thrusting took a rough turn, pounding into Ash almost to the point of pain.

"Slow down!" Ash gasped as he looked back at him, his cock too sensitive to the blankets beneath. But the man said nothing as he pulled Ash's hips back and continued with his thrusts. Ash clutched onto the blankets, wincing as he was rocked back and forth. The heat in his belly became too much as he cried out, his thighs shaking as he came.

A curse came from the man as he felt Ash clamp down on him, and three hard, no, violent thrusts later, Ash felt himself being filled, a grip so tight on Ash's hips that he knew he'd be bruised in the morning. "Well, their effort is certainly appreciated."

His legs felt like jello as he crawled away from the man, too aware of the pain between his thighs. He felt sticky all over as he watched Paul pull back the blankets and get in. "Come on, I'm not done." He pointed to his cock, which was still red and swollen.

Anything he wanted, Ash needed to do.

Ash stared at him for a few seconds and slowly crawled into the man's lap, his hands on his chest as he slowly sunk down onto him, a moan escaping when the head rubbed against his prostate. "Good boy." Ash kissed him softly and began rolling his hips down, Paul's hands gently rubbing on his thighs.

Soon Ash was holding onto the man, arms wrapped around his shoulders as he was made to ride him, hard. Ash kissed him as he was pressed back against the bed, legs going limp by his sides and another quickly approaching orgasm took his breath away. Paul thrusted into him roughly as he held Ash's thighs up. "A very good boy. Feels good doesn't it?" Ash whined, nodding his head as he felt Paul slipping in and out of him, his pace never faltering.

* * *

Ash wasn't sure how much time had passed, but he now laid trapped in the man's arms. The inside of his thighs felt sticky and sore, even if he was able to crawl out from under Paul he wouldn't have been able to make it to the door. He stared at the sleeping man pressed against him, he was extremely handsome and, as he'd just proven to Ash, relentless in bed.

The smell of his cologne was intoxicating, Ash's face being pressed near Paul's neck. Ash adjusted himself and laid back down, tired from his long night with the man. He closed his eyes and yawned, pulling the blanket up a bit to cover more of himself and Mr. Weiss.

* * *

Morning came with bright light through the curtains and Ash laid motionless in the bed as he blinked. He didn't want to move, too comfy in the heavy blankets.

The door to the ensuite opened and Ash sat up quickly, clutching the blanket to his neck. For a second, Ash had forgotten that he was still alone with Paul. He watched as Mr. Weiss walked into the room, curly lilac hair wet and a single towel wrapped around his hips. "Good morning Mr. Weiss." His voice was shaky, watching the man get dressed.

Paul looked at him and a corner of his mouth turned it into a smirk. "It's pronounced 'Vice.' Like.. Vice President." He pulled on his pants, "And a morning it is. You look refreshed, after the way you knocked out last night, I'm not surprised. The shower is free."

Ash nodded and stood, wincing slightly as he held onto the edge of the bed. In the mirror behind Paul he could see the pattern of bruises in the shape of hands blooming along his thighs and hips. He felt sick. The man, who was pulling on his shoes only watched quietly while Ash limped his way to the bathroom, the fluorescent lighting making the marks look worse. "More like vice grip." He said softly, his eyes catching on the deep purple ring around his upper arm, remembering that Cilan had had his share in grabbing on him.

A chuckle could be heard as Paul stood, pulling on his shirt and buttoning it up. Ash just rubbed his eyes before he went to turn on the shower, sighing as hot water poured onto him.

When he emerged, he was surprised to see that Paul was still in the room. He began to quickly dress, "Isn't the meeting for the signing starting soon?" He threw his towel in the hamper as he pulled on his socks.

"I won't be going." Paul responded and Ash's stomach dropped. "I was never interested in investing in the company. But, I don't pass anything up. Bad business, have to make sure it's not just a bad pitch." Ash slowly pulled on his pants and then his undershirt. He thought about what Cilan had told him, knowing that Paul had made up his mind before even coming didn't make Ash feel any better.

"You still got sex out of it so.. not too much of a waste of time." Ash shrugged as he picked up his shoes and sat back down, trying to not make it seem like he was disappointed. "Well, you know your way out." He turned away from Paul, who was watching him intently.

"A company that resorts to giving potential business partners an escort in hopes of a few signatures is a company that's going bottom up. Ever since they took over the company it's gone downhill." Paul shook his head. Ash pulled on his shirt when the bed dipped next to him again, a hand holding onto his chin as it forced him to look at Paul. "This company isn't worth it. But yours.. however, I'd be willing to invest in." He held out a card, Ash took it from him and looked at it as Paul got up and left.

He stared at the open door.

* * *

As expected, Ash and a few others of his coworkers were shown the door, their stuff in hand. He did his best to stay calm on the bus the whole ride home. Ash felt awful as he walked up to the front door of his childhood home, he'd been literally fucked by work and now he'd have to hustle to find something new before rent.

"Ash? Ash, where have you been? " His mother ran to the door, holding it open for him as he carried the box inside. "Oh.. honey.. they didn't." She put a gentle hand on his shoulder.

"It's their loss anyways." Ash smiled, "I'll find something else Mom. Don't worry. And uh, I spent the night there. We had some work that had to get done, ended up going late into the night." He headed up the stairs to empty the box and change.

"Okay, well breakfast is ready, hurry before it gets cold!"

Moments later, Ash headed downstairs in his shorts and a shirt, his mood suddenly shooting up from the dumpster into the clouds as he saw his girl dancing as she munched on berries. "Hi pretty girl! Were you good for Amma?" Shiloh nodded, grinning as Ash sat down next to her after serving himself a plate. "That's good! Daddy missed you so much!" He started eating, absolutely starving from the night before. "Was she okay mom? I'm sorry I didn't call." One hand pushed back shiny black hair out of Shiloh's brown eyes while the other worked on the food.

Delia waved her hand, "She was perfect Ash. We ate a good dinner and watched a movie, she was out by nine and just woke up a hour ago."

Ash could only nod as he wiped away the vavas from Shy's face with a wipie and pulled her out of the high chair for a hug. "That's good, mmmmm, Daddy loves you so much he's just gonna hug you and never let go!" He kissed her cheek over and over as Shy giggled. She danced in his arms happily before settling down and leaning her head against his shoulder.

Ash stared down at her and then kissed her head, "Amma's food so good it knocked you out huh?" He finished his food and hugged Delia with one arm after placing his plate in the dishwasher. "Thanks mom. Really, I mean it. I'm gonna go lay with her ok? Call me if you need me."

"Oh please, all I'm going to do today is catch up on my shows. Go ahead sweetheart." She waved at Shy as Ash carried her upstairs to the room he shared with her.

He held her in one arm as he stared up at the card Mr. Weiss had given him. He'd barely worked this week, and he already knew his check would be small and the thought of job searching sent his mind spinning. Next to him, Shy quietly snored, he rubbed her back and leaned over to get his phone out and dialed the number on the card.

The phone picked up almost immediately, "Hello?" And Ash shivered at the voice.

"Hi Mr. Weiss.. it's Ash."


	2. Chapter 2

"Ash, sweetheart, are you sure you don't just wanna take a break for a few weeks before you go out applying for jobs again?" Delia followed after him as Ash put his wallet in his pocket, one arm hugging onto Shiloh securely, mamón in mouth and two tiny fists tangled in his hair. Ash sat down on the couch, pulling his book bag open with one hand. "I mean, I can always work some too. It doesn't have to be just you working all the time."

He pulled out his folder that held all of his recommendation letters and his resume, Ash looked up at Delia. "Mama, rent's in three weeks and the check I'll be getting tomorrow is not gonna cut it. The whole point of me having a job was so that way you didn't have to work." He put the folder on the table, pulling Shy into his lap and looked at her dead on as she grabbed onto his face and smiled. "If I can find something that's only half days.. so I can leave before she wakes up and come back a few hours later.. I'll take it." He pressed his forehead against Shy's chest as he hugged her. "I don't want to do it either. I hate leaving her."

Shy cooed and Ash felt something wet hit his hair and fall onto the floor while Delia sighed. "Dinner is gonna be ready at six, I want you home at five. And if you can't find anything in these next three weeks, I'll start looking too. She's eight months, which means she'll be walking soon. Trust me when I tell you that you don't want to miss it." She leaned against the arm of couch as Ash covered Shy in kisses. The girl giggled as he played.

He didn't look at Delia as he listened, a hard sigh surfacing as he stared at his girl. He'd already missed the baby teeth, and when she started sitting herself up. If he missed her standing and walking... Ash stood, setting Shy down in her bouncer. "I'll be home for dinner. I already have someone who might hire me. I'll see what the hours are, if not I'll apply other places and wait." He picked up her mamón and sucked on it for a second to clean it before he offered it to her and pressed one last kiss to Shy's cheek, and then hugged his mom after picking up his folder. "See you soon."

"Bye honey! Good luck!" Delia sat down on the couch and watched as Shiloh jumped happily in her chair, just outside the window, she could see Ash running for the bus stop as it came rolling through.

* * *

Ash sat quietly in the even quieter lobby. The receptionist eyed him as he sat in his jeans and tee, he looked around and realized that everyone was dressed up all... dressy. Yeah. He stood out.. "Mr. Ketchum?" Ash stood at the sound of his name, looking around the room as one of the women waved at him. "You can follow me." She waited for him to make it across the lobby and through the door before she started walking down a long hall.

The hall ended, and Ash was lead through a large office space, desks scattered around the room. The woman waved a hand at him, "I'm sorry. Did you say something?" He blinked, face turning red as she held a hand out towards a seat.

"I didn't. You can sit here, Mr. Weiss will call you in when he is ready." And after Ash took a seat, she nodded and left, heading back to the front lobby. Ash kicked his feet out as he looked around the room. Everywhere he looked, there was a desk, and someone sitting in it, typing away. But, every other desk had other people sitting on the other side, some were crying or angry.

He wondered what Paul did for a living.

Suddenly the large glass door next to him opened and he jumped, hand to his chest as he looked up at Mr. Weiss, who was putting away a pair of glasses. "Hello Mr. Weiss." And for a second Ash felt a tinge of curiosity, wondering what Paul looked like with the glasses on. The man he was staring at was already insanely handsome, charming actually, the glasses might just be too much for Ash. Hell. He'd already seen the man naked and just the thought of the night before made Ash shift in his seat. Fingers snapped in front of his face and Ash blinked, blushing when he realized he'd just been staring at Paul's lips the whole time the man was speaking to him. "Sorry?"

"Come in." Paul held his hand out, motioning for Ash to go into the office. Ash got up and smiled softly as he passed Paul and entered the office, taking a seat in one of the twin chairs in front of the large desk in front of him. The door closed behind him, he took a second to take in everything around him. It was simple, but modern and matched the layout of the rest of the office. "Would you like some water?" Paul took a seat across from him, a small bottle of water in his hand.

"Yeah. Thanks." Ash leaned forwards and took it, taking a long drink from it as he looked away from the man who was watching him drink. "Uh, thanks for seeing me. I really appreciate it." He set the bottle in the chair next to him and started rifling through his folder and pulled out all the papers and handed it to Paul. "It's my resume."

Paul took it from him and began looking at it, and then at Ash. "No college experience?"

"School was never uh.. my forte. Barely graduated.. and then some other stuff came up and I never actually got the chance to attend, it was just too expensive." Ash cursed himself as he shifted in his seat. "Not that I never tried! I'm um, I'm severely dyslexic- not that that's an excuse but I'm a hard worker so even though my GPA wasn't very high my teachers still wrote me letters for when I applied to schools and whatever." He felt himself shrinking in his seat as Paul raised a curious brow to the thin stack in his hands, flipping through the pages so quick Ash knew he was a goner.

"The dyslexia is very obvious. Before you hand those out, you need to look over it again and whatever." Paul said curtly as he sat up after putting the stack of papers in one of the drawers of his desk. "Do you have a car?"

Ash shook his head no, "I was saving up for one but I never learned how to drive. I live in Pallet, everything is walking distance and the bus comes through every hour."

Paul only nodded silently as he looked at him. "Will you join me for lunch? I ordered takeout." At the mention of food, Ash's stomach rumbled, but his mind was still on Paul's comment.

He laughed nervously, placing a hand on his stomach. "I ate before I came here, I was.. really just expecting a short interview." He shifted in his seat. "I was fired this morning so.. lunch really wasn't my first thought." He blurted out as Paul got up from his desk and went to open the door for the young man who carried a bag of food.

"Let's eat first. Then we'll talk about a job." He watched as a takeout box was set down in front of him on the desk, a pair of chopsticks set down next to him. Ash stared at him for a long moment, Paul staring between him and the box. Ash picked up the container and opened it, stomach growling louder. He snapped the chopsticks apart and started eating.

Once the empty containers were dropped in the trash, Paul's attention turned back to Ash and he went still. "How much were your previous employers paying you per hour, and how many hours did you work per work week?"

"Nine an hour and about fourty-five to fifty a week. But I was getting medical, dental and vision with them too, for me and my family." He bit at his lip, leg bouncing from how still and quiet the room was. He was locked in Paul's gaze as the man just stared, hands clasped together on the desk.

"I don't think you would have a good experience here. I require all of my workers to at least have a two year degree and some experience in law." And there it was. Ash could only nod as he sat up, gathering his things. All he could mutter was a 'thank' before Paul sat up. "Let me at least finish before you leave. I do have another job for you, if you'll take it."

Ash sat back down, "I'll take anything you have to offer. I just need something that will pay the bills and is flexible with my schedule."

"Your hours will be flexible, every day will be different but you will need to always be free. Since you also have no car, I will send one for you. Your only job is to get in the car, and to do what I ask." Paul held his gaze. "Three hundred weekly, and if you do well, in the next month or so I'll bump up your allowance. Do you accept?"

He could only stare at Paul in bewilderment. "What... exactly... would I be doing?" The offer sounded nice, but his stomach was in knots, unsure of what he was being asked for.

"You'll share your company. Like you did last night." There it was again. Ash's heart nearly stopped beating, caught on the devious gleam in the man's eye. "Sometimes it'll be like last night, or it will be dinner, lunch." Sex. For money.

Ash shifted in his seat. ".. That's prostitution."

"Only it's not. I'll be the only one you'll be with. And I will never ask anything of you that could put your honor on the line. In return, you'll be rewarded with money. But there is one other thing, I will want you to continue school." A pen was rolled between long, nimble fingers.

"School?"

"I want you to go to college. Eventually, you might want to go out and get your own job, but most employers want at least something from college. You can set up your schedule to however you'd like. Along with your allowance, I'll fund your tuition. I won't take no for an answer, education is a necessity. Dyslexia can be conquered."

The pen was put down. A bit starstruck, Ash just stared at him. When Shy came into the picture with his then-girlfriend any thoughts of going back to school had been beaten with a metal bat and kicked down a flight of stairs. The thought of going back to school terrified him. He'd been out of high school for two years, and was grateful that he even managed to claw his way through to graduation. He'd not only be behind, but severely behind.

"Are you sure I HAVE to go to school? I mean, cut that out and I'll do whatever you want." He cracked an uneasy smile at Paul.

"What's holding you back from attending school? You'll have a flexible arrangement and everything paid for." Paul's voice was cold and hard, too sharp to be considered anything but unsatisfied with Ash's answer. "It's non-negotiable. If you accept, you will return to school. I don't think that I'm asking you for too much. You can go for anything. Get a damn degree or certification in.. I don't know, nursing or anything, something. At least three classes for the first semester."

Ash let out a heavy sigh. His leg was shaking uncontrollably as he whined and adjusted himself. "I.."

The man stood, "You said you had family. If you finish a degree or get certified, you have a better chance at getting a good stable high paying job so you can support them and get insurance for them. You'd be able to take care of your family without my help. You have a resume with at least ten pages of recommendations. That's a start." A finger hooked under Ash's chin and forced him to look at their owner. "Do you accept my offer? Three hundred weekly, three classes a semester and no stress from working all the time."

He thought about Shiloh, about finally moving the three of them from that damn house. "Yes."

He was let go, "You have children?" Paul leaned against his desk as he looked at Ash.

"Just one. I live with my mother and my daughter."

"How old is your daughter?"

"Eight months." Ash couldn't help but smile. "She'll be walking soon. I just want her to have a good life. She and my mother are all I have."

Paul was silent as he nodded. "Go home. I'll call you when I've sent someone for you." Ash wasn't able to get out a simple thank you when Paul ushered him out of the door.

* * *

"You're home early!" Delia was sitting on the floor with Shiloh who was crying like Amma had beat her with a stick, her tiny socked foot in the air.

"Well, I found something, it's odd hours.. on call type stuff.. but good money." He sat down next to her and held Shy's hand, "What's wrong baby?"

The sock was pulled off, "She doesn't like the seams of the socks I made her, she prefers to be barefoot and get her feet's dirty!" The foot was dropped as Shy recovered from the torture that Amma had put her through. Ash immediately picked her up and hugged her. "That's great though honey! Remember, if you need me too, I can work."

"No mom. We'll be fine." Ash kissed a red, sniffly baby over and over. "It's okay honey, Amma's done. You're fine." Shy pulled in a few heavy breaths, cuddling up to daddy while Ash and Delia looked at each other and tried to not laugh.

The day went slow until sometime around dinner time, Ash noticed that his phone had buzzed. When he read the text, he was surprised to see that he was being summoned by Paul so quickly. And then he saw that the text had been sent a half hour ago, which caused him to hurry upstairs, pull his shoes back on and kiss his mother and baby girl goodbye before running for the bus stop where a car was waiting for him.

He stopped to catch his breath outside of the car before he climbed in, draping himself across the backseat.

* * *

"Have you eaten?" Ash hadn't gotten much of a chance to take in the large house he'd been chauffeured to when he was quickly wisked through the front door and into what must have been the living room.

"No..." Ash turned back from where he was sitting on the couch to see Paul leaning against the frame of the door, still in his work clothes. "Have you?"

"No. Not yet." He stared at Ash, making him feel self conscious as he was once again, under dressed in his ripped jeans and worn out high tops. "Come with me, there's something I need you to do." He turned and left down the hall.

Ash got up and hurried after him, afraid he'd get lost in the big house. He quietly followed Paul into his office, the computer turned on. "Sit." He was directed to the big chair behind the desk while Paul took a seat next to it. Ash blushed as he shimmied past the man's legs, aware of the eyes that seemed to burn into him.

He looked at the page, and without even thinking, let out a long whine. It was the official Kanto application website that every aspiring college student needed to fill out to apply to their school of choice. "I didn't think you were serious..." Ash didn't even want to think about school, all he wanted to do was work and stay home with his baby. A simple life that didn't involve sleepless nights and deadlines, Shiloh was easier than college.

"I'm completely serious. The semester doesn't start for three months but I don't want you to forget about it. Eventually, I'd like to even attend your graduation." Paul shifted in his seat as he locked eyes with Ash. "This was apart of our deal. You said you would comply, the local community college is a starting point, then if you want to transfer to a university, I'll help you do that. Fill out the application and apply, then we can start on dinner."

Ash fought back actual tears as he turned back to the computer and began the process of opening an account. With eyes on him the whole time, Ash had the application to the community college finished within the hour. He turned back to Paul in defeat, who only nodded, pleased, and got up to leave the room. "Make yourself at home on the couch while I start on dinner."

He headed back to the living room, leaving his shoes near the front door and turned on the tv, which looked nearly unused. He chose a random cartoon that Shy liked to watch and got comfy on the couch. A half hour later, Ash was summoned to the dining room where he was presented with a very delicious looking piece of fish and and a two very green looking sides and a salad. Mouth watering, Ash could barely help himself as he began eating, across from him he even saw Paul crack a small smile.

Despite how little Ash was served, he felt himself very full once he had finished which had been about ten minutes after he'd sat down. He looked across the table where Paul was barely halfway done and blushed in slight embarrassment. "It was delicious... thank you."

"You're welcome. I can't say I've ever seen anyone eat my food that fast, I didn't know whether to take it as a compliment or not." For a second Ash found himself leaning forwards and smiling like an idiot. He caught himself and sat back in his seat, unsure what to do with Paul still eating. "Tell me more about yourself."

Ash blinked, that question was one of the worst questions on the planet. In fact, in the entire universe. "Me? I mean.. I'm not very interesting... just.. a guy.. with a baby... that's my whole personality. Oh! I'm twenty one." Ash shrugged once he was done thinking. But he was telling the truth. Ever since the day he'd found out that Shiloh was on the way, his whole life was centered around her and her mother. He'd worked endlessly for Cilan and his brothers so he could be able to get good insurance and make sure that Shy and her mother were healthy. And even though it had hurt a lot when she'd left and not looked back... everything was okay, because Ash had his baby girl.

Ash blinked his way back into the room. "I'm sorry... what about you?"

Paul finished chewing, swallowed and sat back. "Well. I'm twenty three and I'm from Sinnoh. I graduated early twice, and now here we are."

"That's not much..."

"You didn't say much either. But you tell me what you want me to know in your own time. Then I'll tell you more." Paul set his fork down on his empty plate. Ash just stared at him, looking him over and watching as Paul bowed his head and began to speak slowly in a language that he couldn't understand. After two minutes Paul stopped, stood and took his and Ash's plates and carried them off into the kitchen.

* * *

Their night together had moved onto with Ash being led up to Paul's room. He was kneeling in front of the man, who'd sat himself down at the edge of the bed. Before last night, Ash hadn't touched another man, but now he had two handfuls of Paul. Ash gently lapped at the head as he looked up at Paul curiously, gauging his reactions. Paul, content with watching, only sat back and let Ash do what he wanted.

A bit more bold, he took more into his mouth and began to rub the parts he couldn't quite get just yet. He wasn't quite sure what to expect it to taste like, he'd never even let his ex do that to him. Ash honestly didn't think it was necessary, he'd only cared about how she felt, and she always loved what he'd done to her so it was never a problem for them. Paul tasted similar to Ash licking his own palm, like skin, which wasn't very interesting.

There was a little bit of a natural musk but Ash didn't think it was bad, in fact he thought it was nice. However, it didn't stop him from gagging and pulling off, slightly disgusted with the act. He looked back up at the wet cock in front of him and gagged again, and he crawled away.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry I can't." He put a hand to his chest and just sighed, "It just tastes like nothing. Nothing!" When it was his ex, she had a taste, it was a weird taste but Ash had liked it. He'd loved watching her arch her back, loved feeling her hands in his hair. As much as porn and his stupid virgin fantasies had lied to him, he wished that Paul tasted like something other than skin. Like everyone had said men tasted like. He looked up at Paul with watery eyes from his gagging and to his surprise Paul didn't look mad or anything.

"Well I don't expect you to be an expert on your first try, but you were doing well. We can always try later." He sat up and reached a hand out to Ash, Ash gently took his hand and was pulled towards and into the man's lap. Hands were gently placed on his hips as Paul guided him into a long kiss.

* * *

Later that night, he was once against wrapped up under Paul, kept warm by the blanket and the body he was pressed against. The room was dark, too dark to see anything in front of him, he turned himself around and shimmied closer to Paul in bed. Arms wrapped themselves around him in just the way he wanted, the fading smell of Paul's cologne lulling him to sleep.


	3. Chapter 3

_I would like to recommend a few songs. (Remove the [] from the links!)_

 _Lana Del Rey - BBM Baby (youtu[].be /hHPD_W2QWS8)_

 _Major Lazer ft. Amber - Get Free (youtu[].be /OI3shBXlqsw)_

 _Lana Del Rey - Dynamite (youtu[].be /v8MlYGmVE-c)_

* * *

It was early morning when an annoying alarm rang throughout the room, shocking Ash right out of the beautiful dream he was having about Shy. All of his dreams were of her, always. This dream however, was different. In this dream she was older, starting school, Ash had tearfully hugged her goodbye and had gotten back into the passenger seat of the car. He could hear the voice of the driver telling Ash that everything would be okay, he'd turned to see the driver and...

Paul pulled Ash closer to him as one long arm reached out and clicked the alarm clock off. Ash yawned and looked up at Paul and then looked at the clock. "Six? You get up this early for work?" The hour was unholy, Paul was warm and all Ash wanted was to go back to bed and be held by the gorgeous man.

"Not usually, but we both need to shower, eat and then get on the road so I can drive you home before I go to work." Paul's gruff, deep morning voice sent shivers up Ash's back and he blushed as he felt himself get hard against the warm thigh that was pressed between his own. Paul raised a brow at him and pressed a kiss to his forehead. He untangled himself from Ash and got out of the bed, "Well... would you like to join in me in the shower then?"

Ash was at a loss of words, all the blood in his head had been redirected elsewhere. "No." He croaked, "... Yes?" A large hand reached under the blanket and wrapped around an ankle, Ash yelped as he was pulled to the edge of the bed, clutching the sheet to cover what little dignity he had. The bruises on his thighs from their first time were fading but had been added onto, bite marks scattered along his inner thighs. Paul ran his fingers over them proudly, not paying attention to the way Ash shook when the hand moved up and gripped him through the sheet.

"If you don't, I can finish you off right here." Using both hands, he moved Ash's away and pulled away the sheet to reveal his cock. He smirked at Ash as he wrapped his hand around it and began to play with the slit with his thumb. Ash locked eyes with Paul as a desperate moan escaped his mouth. "Didn't think he'd be awake so early.. but.. if you'd like to shower with me.. I assure you that you'll be just as satisfied. Your choice."

Ash gasped as Paul's thumb slowly tugged at his head. His eyes focused on Paul's hand, until he noticed that Paul's was also standing at full attention. "I... we can shower together." As soon as the answer left his mouth, Ash was pulled off of the bed and led to a large bathroom. In the corner stood the shower that had a stone bench along the wall.

* * *

Breakfast was simple, pancakes with sausage. And in no time, Ash was sitting next to Paul in the passenger seat of a very sleek car, directing him to his house. "I haven't seen my baby in hours, I'm gonna hug her so hard..." He looked over at Paul, an odd feeling of deja vu hit him. "Well, it's only eight so I'm sure she's sleeping... but I will get to pick her up and take her to bed with me." Ash was giddy at the thought of seeing baby. "Oh! Turn left right here!"

Paul didn't say anything as Ash directed him, which Ash was thankful for. "Uh... thank you for driving me home. You can park right outside of this white house." Ash pointed and unbuckled his seatbelt and waited. Once Paul was parked he leaned over the the console and kissed him softly. "This is.. my house. Have a good day at work!"

Paul looked between Ash and the house, "I want you ready at two thirty, you and I are going shopping." He wrapped an arm around Ash's waist and pulled him close, "I'd like to take you out, but I can't have you wearing jeans and those shoes. Okay?"

Ash nodded, "Yeah.. I kinda figured, the only nice clothes I have are from my high school graduation and the suit I was wearing the other night."

"Bring those with you, they'll make shopping easier." Paul kissed Ash again, giving him one quick slap on the ass. "Go see your baby. I'll pick you up at three." And he waited, watching as Ash ran through the opening of the fence and up the stairs to the door. Once he saw the door close behind him Paul pulled off.

* * *

In the house Ash found Delia asleep on the couch. "Oh mom..." He draped a blanket over her and tucked it in before he crept upstairs to his room and kicked off his jeans before making his way over to Shy's crib and gently picked her up and carried her back to bed so he could cuddle her.

Shy stirred but didn't wake, a hand clutching into his shirt as she cuddled closer. He kissed her head and rubbed her back gently, falling asleep minutes later.

Hours later he was woken by baby, who was whining. Ash yawned and got up, carrying her over to the bathroom so he could change her. "I'm here, I'm here." He kissed her cheek and laid her down and began to change her. Once she was clean, Ash buckled her down to the changing table and hurried to pee and wash his hands so he could unbuckle her and get her something to eat.

The marks on his legs caught his attention in the mirror and reminded him to pull on a pair of sweatpants so he didn't give his mother a heart attack. When he finally got Shiloh buckled into her high chair his mother was already making breakfast for the three of them. "Morning sweetie!" She smiled at him and hurried over to kiss Shy. "Hi sweetheart."

Shy babbled happily as cut up berries were placed in front of her. Ash let her feed herself as he started on his own plate. "Mama." He looked up at Delia who was halfway through her breakfast. "Mama you can't wait up for me like that. My hours are on call, sometimes it'll be all day or night or just for a few hours. I know you're worried, but I just need you to take care of yourself when I'm not here okay?"

Delia looked at him with a frown and hands on her hips. "Honey, you know I can't help but worry about you."

"I know Mama. But I need you to take care of yourself and baby while I'm not here. More on yourself, I can handle myself." He got up and hugged her. "Please mom. I don't want to walk in on you passed out on the couch again." She sighed and hugged him back.

"Okay." Behind them Shy slammed her tiny palms down against the table and whined. Ash turned back to see her with her arms raised for him.

"Come here my princess." He unbuckled her and pulled her out, hugging her gently. "I love you too. I need you to be extra good for Amma okay?" Big brown eyes looked up at him and then to Delia and she giggled. Ash kissed her cheek, knowing she understood. "Good girl!" Soon, she was full and was dozing happily in his arms on the couch.

Ash and Delia quietly watched the midday news as she slept on his chest. For Pallet, there was never much in the news except for what came out of Viridian. _"And in other news, it looks like there could be a population boom coming to our little town of 2,932. After buying out a local hotel company two days ago, the owner of Rainbow Happy Resorts has turned his eye to our little patch of land. Viren, the owner is planning on building a resort and a small water park and maybe even a mall with outlets to go with it on the south side of town..."_

Ash just rolled his eyes and got up from his seat, handing Shy off to Amma so he could go get dressed as the clock on the tv read two thirty. _"Viren is even offering to compensate families at a fair price for their farms so they can begin construction as soon as possible."_

"That's a bunch of crap," Delia sighed, "As if any of these families would sell their homes." She turned down the tv and cast a glance at Ash who was coming back down the stairs with a fresh shirt and jeans. "I mean, we supply most of Kanto with local, cheap produce. There's no way Mayor Oak would even let him come poke around."

Ash just shrugged as he looked at the tv, and then felt a chill go down his spine as a picture of Viren, the President of the company was shown on the screen. "I... know him."

 _"Mayor Oak has already begun to make arrangements to speak with Viren, saying that it would be good revenue for the town. However, this could mean that the families we've had for centuries could be forced from their homes. I have great hopes that my cousin, our Mayor Silas Oak would never allow this to happen and would instead offer the land much further south. I'm Soloman Oak and I'll see you later tonight at eight."_

Delia looked at him, "What? How?" She hurried to turn the television back up but the broadcast had already finished and instead, Shy's favorite cartoon was beginning. "Ash?"

He thought back to the night he met Paul, the scared look he'd shared with his female coworker who had led Viren into a room down the hall from the one he'd led Paul to. "Uh.. uh..." He looked over at her. "The signing... My boss mentioned the possibility of selling their company because they weren't making enough or something... I don't remember... I saw him there. He must have bought them out." He shivered at the thought and made a mental note to reach out to her and make sure she was okay. He'd been lucky to be paired up with Paul, he knew that now.

Delia frowned at him. "I really hope that Silas puts that man in his place or I'm just gonna have to bike next door and give him a piece of my mind. This is your father's childhood home you know.. after he died this is all we have left from him..." She sighed as she looked around the old, but still beautiful house.

Ash tuned her out as he finished buckling his belt and he went to the kitchen to get himself a snack before making sure he had his phone and wallet. Kissing her and Shy goodbye, he let her know he'd be going to work and headed out of the front door to the bus stop to wait for Paul.

Like he said, at exactly three o'clock, Paul's sleek black car pulled up next to him and the passenger window rolled down. Paul looked at him with a raised brow, "Hey kid, want some candy?" He held up a small bag of peach rings.

"You... you did not just make that joke." Ash couldn't help but start laughing, he got into the passenger seat and happily took the gummy candy. "Thank you though. Baby's too young to have candy and my mom has banned it because I used to get sugar sores a lot as a kid." He tore into the bag after buckling up.

"What the hell are sugar sores?" Paul looked at Ash, a slightly disgusted look on his face.

Ash bit off a piece of the ring. "It's a cute name that my dentist used for cavities. I was one of those kids who had silver teeth. My mom cut back my sugar intake and made sure I brushed, flossed and used mouthwash every single morning and night especially when I got my adult teeth and needed braces."

He watched Paul let out a visible sigh of relief and start driving. Ash just shrugged as he continued eating. "The only sweets I get to have are what she bakes from home, I honestly haven't even touched candy in years." He smiled at Paul nice and big, showing off his off-white teeth. "See? Perfect condition!"

* * *

The mall on north side of Viridian that Paul drove them to was the biggest building Ash had seen outside of the baseball stadium. The north was the richer side of town, and not a place Ash had ever gone to. This was the type of mall that had a garage and an ice rink inside of it.

Just walking next to Paul in the mall, Ash felt broke. Which, of course, he was. Paul was dressed in his suit and his glasses on and the answer to his thoughts from the day before had been answered. Paul was hot with them on. Dangerously so. The only thing that could be seen as unprofessional about the man was the long, thick braid that ended just below his ribs.

Unconsciously, Ash fell more than a few paces back from the man. Paul's height and long strides, made that even easier for him. He felt self conscious about being seen with Paul. He was walking around the fanciest mall in town with the reincarnation of Adonis while looking like he'd stumbled out of Napoleon Dynamite.

His plan to not look like he was with Paul backfired when the man turned to him and saw that he was a good ten steps away. "Come on, this is the store. You can look around next time we're here." He held out a hand to the store to his right.

After following Paul around the store and giving his honest opinions about what was pulled off of the racks, Ash was soon led into a large, bright dressing room with a small rack of clothes. Ash turned red as Paul got seated on the couch against the back wall. "... Are you gonna stand there and watch me get dressed?" Paul just let out a short laugh.

"Ash, I've seen you naked. This isn't much different." Ash felt his face get hotter as he turned away from Paul. "Plus, I'd like to watch the show." He smirked at Ash.

After kicking off his shoes and dropping his jeans and tee on the ground, Ash spent a good minute or so looking at himself in the mirror. The bruises on his hips had already faded to a yellow but the dark purple ring where Cilan had grabbed him looked absolutely ugly. Even now he could feel the soreness it had and it surprised him.

Cilan had never once gotten handsy with any of the employees, and Ash had never given him a reason to. In fact, Cilan had never been anything near forceful with him either. There had been times where he'd felt that he was actually being favorited by him, that Cilan had probably liked him. But now, all Ash could see was the desperation that was channeled into the grip he'd had on Ash. Lost in thought, Ash didn't see that Paul had come up behind him until a strong, but gentle hand was placed on his hip. Soft music played overhead.

 _It's like it's your job to work me up, treatin' me nice and then treatin' me rough.._

Ash jumped and looked at Paul in the mirror. "I'm sorry.. I should have asked last night when I marked you." Paul's hand moved from his waist to gently grip Ash's inner thigh, where small purple love marks had been speckled. "I got carried away, you're very soft..." Paul removed his hand and took a step back.

 _I don't know why but I can't get enough, I like it, I like it.._

Ash didn't say anything for a moment, the experience with Paul the night before hadn't been a bad one. He enjoyed it, a lot. Paul had taken his time, from the beginning where he only kissed Ash to when he'd laid Ash down softly and tugged off his clothes, kissing his way along Ash's skin.

 _And I know that I'm making you nuts, middle of the night and when I'm waking up I don't know why, but you can't get enough. You like it, you like it.._

When Paul had traveled down between his thighs and began to nip gently at him, the rush he felt was so different than anything he'd experienced with his ex. And even when the nips had turned into bites, he didn't mind because Paul had still been gentle with him.

"You don't need to apologize Paul." He turned back and looked at him. "I... I liked it.. I've never had anyone do that to me, it was nice." And it was. For once in the past two years, Ash felt cherished. He knew that Paul wasn't looking for anything more than the arrangement they had, but he still did a very good job of making Ash feel like it was more.

 _Lettin you love me in your letters, though the way that you write is crazy you're typing this poetical.._

A corner of Paul's mouth rose, his smile soft and it made Ash feel like he was melting. Ash leaned up and kissed him softly, pleased when Paul's hand returned to his hip and the other pulled him close.

 _I think I met my match in you._

The kiss lasted longer than expected and got heated quickly, hands groping and a thigh pressed between Ash's. It wasn't until Ash remembered that they were in the dressing room that he found the will to push Paul away, panting for air. Paul still held onto him, Ash was shaky against him, knees weak from grinding his very obvious brief-clad erection against Paul's thigh.

 _It's like it's your job to work me up, treatin' me nice and then treatin' me rough.._

"I uh... I should get started on these clothes..." He knew his face must have been as red as cherry as he danced back on his heels for the rack of clothes. He did his best to keep himself calm and eventually he'd gone flat again once he had the first outfit on. "How does it look?"

Paul just lifted his hand and motioned for him to turn around.

 _Yeah yeah, you're always on my mind. Yeah yeah, when will you be mine? He signs XO, hugs, hey. I know it's true love cause my heart goes yay._

After trying on everything from the rack, they decided on what to buy and on the way to the register Ash's attention was caught by the bright sign of the infant and children's section. Without even thinking, Ash made a beeline heading straight for the one year old girl's section, looking around at the all the tiny dresses and jumpers.

"Oh no, they're all so cute..." Shirts, shorts, jumpers, overalls, skirts and dresses... Ash pulled down everything he thought was suitable for Shy. Along with the large bundle in his arms, Ash picked up a small pair of baby blue shorts with gold buttons on the sides. "These would look so good with her bumblebee nappy and her-" Ash couldn't even finish his sentence as he spotted the price tag. "Seventy two dollars for these shorts?! My mom could make these for less than five!" He quickly dropped them and his heart broke as he began setting down his arm full of clothes.

"What are you doing?" Ash looked back at Paul, who was picking back up the pair of shorts. "If you want them, get them." Paul hung the shorts back on their hanger and held them with the clothes they'd picked out in the room.

Ash blinked. "Paul... this is.. this is easily like.. fifteen hundred dollars." He pointed to the pile of clothes he'd been recently holding.

"And?"

He shook his head, taking the shorts from Paul. "No. That's way too much. I didn't even look at the tags on what we're already buying." Ash felt sick just staring at the four full outfits that he'd decided on.

Paul didn't say anything before he nodded and led Ash back up to the register, he placed down the clothes and Ash watched the clerk begin scanning everything. Watching the price shoot up into the mid hundreds made him feel woozy until suddenly, out of nowhere, Paul slapped down the pile of baby clothes that Ash abandoned. He only shot Ash a mild look of interest as he gawked at Paul, and to put the final touch, Paul held up the pair of baby blue shorts and gently laid them down on top of the rest of the pile.

And once all of the clothes were scanned and bagged Ash looked at Paul, then back at the till, and then back at Paul before he headed outside of the store, feeling nauseous as he watched Paul pull out his debit card and hand it to the clerk.

The walk back to the car was silent as Ash tried to process what had just happened. Once they were in the car Ash buckled in and turned to him. "You... didn't have to do that..."

Paul said nothing.

"Paul. Baby isn't even going to wear half of that... I was just excited.." Ash looked down at the bag between his legs where all of the clothes had been neatly folded into the bag. "She's only eight months but already wears sizes for one year olds.. she'll out grow most of this..." He held up the frilly pink polka-dot raincoat that Ash had pulled down without a second thought. He felt like shit as he looked over at Paul.

"Ash I can promise you that what I spent today didn't even make a dent. The clothes made you happier than the ones I was going to buy you anyways so it doesn't even matter. Just say thank you." Paul's eyes were focused on the road.

Ash blinked back tears, holding the raincoat to his chest. "Thank you."

"You're welcome. Come on, let's get something to eat and then I'll take you home."

* * *

After dinner, Ash was safely returned home with all his clothes, making up some quick lie about his boss writing him a check so he could buy professional clothes and had some money left over for Shy.

"Have you eaten dinner yet?" Delia asked once he was back down the stairs and Shy in a cute new pyjama set. "Oh! Look at you, aren't you just the prettiest little bedbug ever?"

Shy giggled as Ash nodded his head. "Yeah. I've eaten. I really honestly just want to get some rest before tomorrow. I'm not sure if I even get weekends off so.." He handed Shy off so Delia could give her kisses before taking her back. "We'll be off to sleep okay?"

"Of course. I'll see you in the morning honey." Ash gave her a kiss before heading upstairs. He closed his door and climbed into bed with Shy, making sure she was comfy on his chest before pulling up the blanket.

It took him a while to fall asleep, patting Shy's back rhythmically.

* * *

The following week had been mostly uneventful with them trying to set up a steady schedule and Paul kept up their payment arrangement, leaving Ash with just enough to pay rent.

Ash sat at the bar and fed Shy crackers with peanut butter, it was ten till seven. Almost time for him to hand her off to her Amma and get to "work." However, baby had been particularly picky about what she wanted to eat and Ash didn't see the harm in feeding her something sweet before bed.

Shy happily played with her crackers as Ash and Delia watched the news. Like always, nothing too serious. Suddenly, Shy started crying and sniffling. Ash turned back to her to see her begin to turn red, peanut butter covered hand in her mouth. "Honey what's wrong?" Ash pulled her hand out and cleaned it off with a wipe. Shy cried harder and fought with him, her breathing heavy and raspy. "Shiloh?"

It was then that Ash noticed the red splotches that began to bloom on her face and neck. "Oh shit. MOM! MOM." Ash pulled the table off of her chair, not caring where it landed and hoisted Shy out of her chair and carried her to the front door, slipping on his high tops. She coughed and coughed and coughed, wheezing for air. "Mom she's allergic! Come on we have to get her to a hospital. I have a ride waiting for me at the bus stop!"

Ash didn't hear what Delia was saying back to him as they both ran through the fence and up the dirt road to the stop where the driver Paul had sent was waiting. He couldn't hear anything but Shy's terrifying cough. "Come on baby, come on, you'll be okay. I've got you." Once he got to the car he threw open the door and scrambled in. He didn't bother buckling in and slammed the door. "Take us to Viridian Children's Hospital."

The driver looked at Ash, bewildered as Delia began to call the hospital to let them know what was going on. "But sir-"

"Fucking floor it!" Ash all but screamed, which only made Shy wheeze harder, tiny body shaking as she cried. The driver didn't need to be yelled at twice as the car sped off towards Viridian.


	4. Chapter 4

_"Yes. Well she's having an allergic attack- it's peanut butter apparently! No! She's only eight months old and we don't have an appointment until-"_ Ash held Shy close as Delia fought with the nurses on the phone. "SHE CANNOT BREATHE! We're on our way to you so can you just book us a room with Doctor Vallen! Yes, yes." The corn fields that zoomed past them leaving Pallet were dark. He did his best to keep her calm as Amma got more and more frustrated in the back seat.

"YES! WE HAVE INSURANCE! We just saw Doctor Vallen three weeks ago there's NO WAY that the information changed." Soon they reached the long road that led to Viridian, the bright city lights a beacon in the darkness around them. " _Shiloh Ketchum_ , she should be in the sys- H, is there any other way to spell it?! May 31st, 2018. Oh really? Her full name? You HAVE to be joking!"

Shy's coughing turned into wheezing and Ash anxiously looked over and saw that the driver was pushing one-ten, doing his best to get them to the hospital. "Shiloh Evangeline Maria Ketchum. Will you have doctors waiting for us in the ambulance bay? Yes? Thank you. We'll be there shortly." Delia hung up with a sigh. "I hate those nurses, how were we supposed to know she was allergic? You're not allergic, your father wasn't either."

Ash just shrugged, rhythmically patting Shy's back. "I can't even remember if... she was allergic to it..." Finally, they entered city limits and Ash prayed to Mew for safe passage to the hospital. "Can we push this car a little more?" Paul's driver let out a "I dunno" sound and switched gears or whatever and began to weave in and out of the traffic. Very soon a Jenny on a motorcycle pulled up behind them, red and blue lights flashing along with her siren. Delia leaned forwards, "Don't you DARE stop."

The driver just shook his head. "I wasn't planning on it, she's turning blue. Hold on tight, I'll get us there." Turning on the hazard lights, he continued, and more police cars joined the Jenny. Ash and Delia watched as another Jenny pulled up to the passenger side and Ash rolled down the window, holding Shy into view and Ash felt like he was going to cry as Jenny's face went pale. She revved again and pulled ahead, talking rapidly to someone on her speaker and three patrol cars pulled in front of them so they could get everyone out of the lanes.

After what seemed like hours the driver made a hard turn and pulled into the ambulance bay and both Ash and Delia scrambled out of the car with Shy where a team of doctors waited for them. Ash handed her off to one of the doctors who immediately stabbed her with a syringe and laid her down on the stretcher. Jenny followed Ash and Delia in as they watched a doctor put a breathing tube in her, and instantly Shy began to pink back up. He watched her with tears in his eyes as her tiny chest moved up and down rapidly. "Oh Mew." Ash moved to hug Jenny, apologizing for the trouble before moving to sit next to Shy, who was being hooked up to an IV. "Shy, baby..." He reached out and held her tiny hand gently, the other moving up to push her wet black hair out of her eyes. "Baby I'm so sorry. You're going to be okay, the doctors will take care of you."

Soon after telling the doctors what had happened, Shy was given medicine and the tube was removed with the doctors deeming her stable enough to be taken up to a private room. Once she was settled Ash and Delia both gave a statement for Jenny, who wished them well and left.

* * *

Despite her being six inches from meeting Arceus, Shiloh was sitting next to Amma and happily playing with the toys that had been brought to her by the nurse. And for that, Ash was happy. He kicked off his shoes and climbed in next to her, her red ladybug nappy clashed with her bright white hospital gown and her hair stuck up at all angles. Even with all the tubes, she was still adorable. Ash wiped his eyes and kissed her red cheek, hugging her to his chest he stretched out and laid down, being mindful of her IV. Shy babbled away to him, toys in hand, suddenly she turned her head to the door and Delia stood. Assuming that Dr. Vallen, who said he'd visit with Shy to make sure she was doing alright, was about to come in, Ash sniffled and wiped his eyes and sat up, turning towards the door. In the doorway stood Paul and his driver, who looked awfully short next to him.

"Ash? Do you know him?" Ash saw his mother wink and sit back down when Paul put his hands in his pocket. "He's so handsome!" She whispered at him, Ash felt his cheeks get red.

"Mom! He's... my boss.." The driver left and Ash headed for the door, leading the man across the hall so he could still keep an eye on Shy. Once they were away from his mother's hearing distance Ash turned to him. "What are you doing here?" And then it hit Ash, he was supposed to be having dinner with Paul right about now... "Oh! I'm... so sorry I didn't call.."

"It wasn't the first thing on your mind, I understand. I'm glad she's okay." Paul turned to look where Shy was bouncing in bed and Delia was giving Ash a smirk. "Shiloh right?"

Ash blinked up at him.

"My driver told me, I hope you don't mind, I told the hospital I was family so I would be let up here."

"Me and my mom just call her Shy. She's anything but that, but it's just her nickname. My full name is Ashton so we wanted to give her something short too." Ash looked away from Delia who was now wagging her brows, if only she knew. He couldn't help but laugh though. Her stares had gotten him into trouble before especially when it came to Shy's mom.

"She's cute. She looks just like you." Paul looked into the room where Shy waved at him in excitement, and Ash's heart melted like butter when he smiled and waved back at her, making Shy giggle. If only they weren't in a hospital. "She's not cute she's adorable."

"Thank you. I'm just so happy she's okay." Ash wiped more tears from his eyes. "I don't know what would have happened if I had never met you and had your driver." Had his mother not been watching with her eagle eyes he would have hugged Paul.

Before Paul could say anything, it was then that a green haired woman dressed in black interrupted him. She turned to Paul, and smiled, flipping her hair over her shoulder. "Mr. Ketchum? I need you to come with me."

Ash blinked and stepped between her and Paul, unreasonably angry at the attention she showed him. "Hi, _I'm_ Mr. Ketchum, that's _my_ baby, thank you very much." And for a second he just screamed at himself inwardly at the tone he'd used with her. Paul was not his boyfriend, Paul was free game and if she wanted a dip, it wasn't his choice if she got some or not.

She narrowed her eyes at him through a fake smile. "I apologize. I'm Heather from billing and collections. We need to talk so if you could follow me to my office..." She turned on her heel and marched off and Ash followed after.

It wasn't until he was being seated that he realized that Paul had followed him. She closed the door and sat down at her desk. "So Mr. Ketchum, I regret to inform you that your insurance has termed and we can't continue to provide services to..." she looked at the screen, "Sheila oh- Shiloh.. unless you pay out of pocket. We will however, refer her to the nearest local public medical center where she can continue her recovery. You, however, will still be held accountable for tonight's services."

Ash only blinked at her. "Excuse me? What do you mean I'm not covered?! I thought I was covered for the rest of the year? I still paid for that! We just brought her here like a month ago for her shots!"

She just shook her head as she printed out a bill. "Well according to your insurance you were dropped two weeks ago." She handed the paper to him and Ash felt queasy as he looked at the final, total number.

"That's illegal according to C. O. B. R. A." Her face dropped as Paul got up, plucking the bill from Ash and leaned over to turn her computer towards him so he could read. He sighed and pulled on his glasses. "The insurance company is accountable by law under the act to continue coverage up to eighteen months or longer." Ash sat back as he listened. "But..." he looked at Ash with a disappointed face. "Your insurance company would have done that, had your employer not dissolved. So even if you wanted to sue, you couldn't."

"Excuse me but who are you?" Heather looked at Paul, considerably less welcoming then she had been ten minutes ago. She pulled the screen back and locked the desktop.

Paul sat back down, "Attorney Paul Weiss, J. S. D. And soon to be Judge Paul Weiss. You will not be moving Miss Ketchum from her room and we will continue treatment here. Will you honor the insurance's fee schedule because of the situation?"

She blinked at him, pale at the mention of his name. "I'm not qualified to honor the fee schedule, you would need to talk to the Chief of Surgery and the legal team."

Ash just couldn't help but look at Paul as he nodded. "Then get me to the Chief. And while you're at it, I'd like a printed fee schedule of Mr. Ketchum's insurance and the fee schedule for the hospital itself. I don't need you overcharging my client."

"Yes... of course.. you can return to your daughter's room and I will make a call to the Chief. They'll be able to have all that ready for you." Heather pulled out a laminated paper and began typing out a number on her phone.

Once the her call was finished, Paul finally stood and Ash hurried after him and out of her office. "Paul... you don't have to do this... I'll just.. make payments on it."

"No, you won't. You can't let people like them just push you around. You're a single father with only one source of income, you have to stand your ground and not just roll over for them or they're going to continue to take from you." Paul looked at the bill. "This would easily be a whole year's worth of income for you Ash, if you had still been working for Cilan."

Ash moved to take the paper. "Shiloh is worth it."

"Yes, she is. But this." Paul just shook his head as he looked at it, "If you made this much all year, you still would have been in debt for at least ten years if you starved yourself to pay this off. You're not paying this."

That thought scared Ash, the thought of all the medical bills and collection calls made his head spin. He looked at the bill and sighed. Nearly two grand for a simple emergency visit, and now they had a room with it.

He just looked back around the small billing office before the sign caught his eye. "You're right!" Ash couldn't help but grin up at him, "I won't be. And you won't either." He headed over to one of the counters where a cute pink haired clerk sat. "I'd like to apply for Kanto's emergency medical benefits."

The clerk just looked up at him and smiled sweetly, clicking away at her computer. "Let's get started then."

* * *

"Alrighty! Shiloh has been approved, you should receive your cards in the mail over the next three weeks but I've already gone into her account and attached her coverage. Usually it takes a few days for her coverage to kick in but I'll leave a note in her chart to send out the claims once she's active. As for right now, you and your husband can have peace of mind that we're gonna take care of her!" The clerk smiled at both Ash and Paul as she handed Ash all of the paperwork. "Now get back to your baby, I'm sure she misses you!"

Ash ran around the desk and hugged her tight before he and Paul made their way back to Shy's room. "Emergency benefits?" Paul looked at him with a slight grin.

"My mom used to have me on it because my dad couldn't afford insurance at the time. I don't have to pay, I don't have to worry about if anything else happens, it's covered. She's covered. It's only until she's twenty one, and I can take her off of it once I get actual insurance." They stopped outside of Shy's room. Dr. Vallen was inside giving Shy her exam.

"I'm impressed. I never would have thought about that." Hands in his pockets, he and Ash watched through the window. "But now I don't have to go make those lousy hospital lawyers feel bad and I was kinda looking forward to that."

Ash couldn't help but laugh as he looked at Paul, who was completely serious and actually looked disappointed. "You are..." Ash took a deep breath, "Thank you for standing up for me like that. I probably wouldn't have even given a second thought about being dropped. You didn't have to do that for me, but.. thank you."

Paul's eyes were soft as he took off his glasses and put them up. "You're welcome. But.. with who we are to each other, I would not have felt right leaving you to sort with that on your own." He looked inside where Shy was playing with the doctor. "I want you to call me if you ever need me for things like this. Anything you don't understand, anything." Ash held his breath as Paul looked back at him, "As long as I'm not in court, or with a client, I will help you."

Tears pricked at the corners of Ash's eyes as he looked away from Paul. "Thanks." Just then, the door opened and Dr. Vallen spotted him, coming over for a hug.

"Mr. Ketchum! Shy's doing fine, but I am going to keep her for the week. We're going to start patch testing for her and I can already tell you, she won't be happy but it'll help her in the long run until she needs to get repatched at ten okay?"

Ash nodded. "Thank you Dr. Vallen."

"It's my pleasure, I'll see you in the morning. We'll start around eleven. I would just head home and pack a few bags for you and your mom and Shy. You'll need it." The kind, graying Doctor just smiled sweetly and both of them before continuing on down the hall.

"I should get going then..." Ash felt Paul's hand on his shoulder.

"No, wait." He turned to Paul. "Do you wanna meet her?"

While his face didn't change, Ash could see the surprise in Paul's eyes. "Are you sure?"

He looked over at Shy through the window, Delia held her close and rubbed her back. He then gently reached out for Paul's hand, holding it onto it and led him into the room. "Yeah.. I'm sure."

Delia raised a brow at him as her eyes caught where Paul's hand wrapped around Ash's. "Shy, corazón." Shy turned back, smiling happily and cooed as she reached for Ash. Ash sat down on the edge of the bed, with Paul awkwardly taking seat next to him. "Hi beautiful. I want you to meet my... friend. Paul." He looked up at his mom. "He's... my boss..." And even then he couldn't help but blush as he felt Paul's foot gently tap at Ash's.

"Hello." Paul reached out to shake Delia's hand, she smiled at him as she shook it.

"It's nice to meet you Paul." She then got very serious, pulling Paul close. "Please date my son."

"MOM!" Ash practically screamed as Paul grinned.

"It's been seven months, please take him out. I promise he's so sweet." She continued. Paul just looked at Ash, who was using Shy to hide behind.

"Rest assured Mrs. Ketchum, we are in fact, seeing each other." And Ash almost dropped Shy as Delia turned red. Paul then turned his attention to baby who was eagerly reaching for him. "And hello to you, I've heard so much about you." He gently took Shy and hugged her.

Ash watched as she got comfy in his arms, Paul's expression soft. The room was quiet as she stopped giggling and a very tiny _"Hi!"_ replaced the silence. Both Ash and Delia sat up in shock as Shy giggled.

"Shy!" She turned back and looked at him. "Hi!"

"Say it again baby." He couldn't help but cry as she happily said her first word over and over again until she leaned against Paul and yawned, long lashes fluttering. He leaned forwards and kissed her cheek.

"Mom." Ash gently took Shy from Paul and tucked her into the bed. "I'm gonna go home and get her stuff packed since she'll be staying here a week. Just text me everything you need so I can bring it back." She nodded as Shy sleepily waved at Paul as he stood.

Paul smiled back softly and waved as he got his keys out. "Goodnight Mrs. Ketchum, Shiloh."

"I'll be back in a few hours okay?"

"Okay." Ash gave her and Shy a kiss before he followed Paul out of the room. He silently followed Paul through the hospital, dodging doctors and nurses, grateful that his daughter was okay.

* * *

The ride home next to Paul was quiet, Ash sneaked a peek over at him. "Paul..?"

"Yes?" Ash's eyes moved to where Paul's hand rested on the wheel.

"You know... you didn't have to lie to my mom. I mean, I don't need her knowing that.. I'm sleeping with you but.. I told her I was just working for you. You didn't need to tell her that we were dating when we're not." He gulped when Paul's brows pulled together. "I just.. I know you're not really looking for anything right now and.. I mean.. certainly not with me." Ash kept blabbing, unable to stop talking as he stuttered. "I mean come on Paul you're-,"

"Ash." Paul's deep voice cut through his own and Ash clamped his lips shut. "Are you seeing anyone else?" And Ash took a quick breath as he felt the irritation in Paul's voice.

"No..."

"Do you remember what we agreed on when we started dating?" Paul looked over at him.

Ash could only shake his head. "I have to go to school... I know that.. But you said it was an arrangement, not that we were dating..."

Paul frowned. "When we met in my office, do you remember me telling you that you would be off limits from everyone else?" When Ash nodded he continued. "Then why would you think that you wouldn't be the only person I was seeing? Do you honestly think that I would want to share you?"

"... No.."

"Okay. We have been going on dates and sleeping together for almost two weeks Ash, I think it's safe to say that we're officially seeing each other now. Don't you think?" Ash blinked as he tried to process what Paul just said.

"But you're still giving me money." Ash sat up in his seat.

"And? Was I supposed to just cut off your only source of income because we moved into dating?"

"You never even properly asked me out! How was I supposed to know we were dating?" Ash huffed, "Don't you know that you have to formally ask someone to date you?"

Paul just sighed as they left Viridian city limits and hit the single road that led to Pallet. "Ash. A week is usually enough for people in our situation to figure out if they want to take the next steps." A warm hand wrapped around Ash's. "Do you officially want to date me? The only thing that will change between us is your status."

Ash looked down at the hand and twined his fingers between Paul's. "... Yes. I like the word 'boyfriend' better than.." Ash bit his lip, "you know.."

"Better than sugar baby?" And Ash just nodded as Paul laughed. "You put that title on yourself because I have never once used those terms. Either way, now it's official." He looked over at Ash as he pulled into the driveway and parked the car. "I'll wait here so I can drive you back to the hospital."

* * *

Back at the hospital, after carrying up all of the bags, Paul pulled Ash in for a long kiss that made him feel dizzy. Ash could feel his cheeks turn red as he caught a glance from his mother, and Paul only grinned at him, watching with amusement as he stumbled away. "I'll see you in the morning."

Ash closed Shy's room door and headed to bed.

"He's handsome honey." Delia's hushed voice was soft. "I'm happy for you. You deserve it."

Ash just looked at her as he fit himself into bed with Shy. "Thanks mom.."

"Does this mean I'll get more grandbabies?" Even in the dark he could see the smirk on her face. "He'll give you beautiful babies."

"MAMA!"

"Oh please? Maybe in a year or so? Shy needs siblings you know."

"Goodnight mom!" Ash whined as he hugged Shy close.

"Goodnight sweetie."


	5. Chapter 5

"Come on Ash, I just want to help you." Gary followed his friend up the stairs to his room. "You don't want to go in blind. Plus... it makes girls feel more comfortable when guys have experience!"

"I'm sure it's actually the opposite Gary..." Ash's whole face was beet red as he sat down at Gary's bay window, the tall teen sitting down next to him.

"Okay, uh, remind me again Ash... out of the two of us, who has been on more dates?"

Ash frowned as he looked at Gary. "You."

"That's right! This is your very first date, I want to make sure you're prepared, because if I'm being honest Ash, you're lucky Maeve even said yes to going on a date with you." Gary leaned back against the wall and looked out to the field where his older sister was sitting with her children.

Then he noticed Ash's face. "Hey. Man. Ash, I'm sorry. I wasn't trying to be rude."

Ash blinked back tears at his best friends harsh words, looking away and out the window to the group of four. "No. You're right. I waited all these years and then I stumbled over my words so bad I ran off.. She's just so... you know.."

"Yeah.." Gary put a hand on his friends shoulder. "And you guys would be a good couple which is why I wanna help you so you can be sure you don't mess up!" He slowly scooted closer to Ash, pulling off the old baseball cap his friend wore.

In the few minutes they'd been sitting at the window, Ash's blush had died down but came back with a vengeance as he felt Gary's hand run through his hair. "But do you have to kiss me? You can just... tell me how it works can't you?" Gary's hand gripped softly in his hair and he looked up at his friend. "I just.. feel like I'm cheating on her."

"You haven't even taken her on a date Ash, how can you be cheating. It's not even official. You have to ask her if she wants to be your girlfriend."

Ash nodded, "I know that but.. I'm not gay dude..." He put a hand on Gary's chest, "I like girls, we're not gay." Not sure who he was trying to convince, he looked away in embarrassment.

"Christ Ash, of course we're not gay!" Gary rolled his eyes at his friend when Ash's only response was, ' _Don't use his name in vain!'_ He watched his friend cross his chest, whispering Spanish prayers. "Fine Ash. Fine. You can find someone else to kiss you so you don't make yourself look like a fool in front of the girl of your dreams."

Ash watched as Gary got up, "I'm gonna go get some juice. Want some?"

"Yes, thank you." Ash sighed, looking back out the window towards the grass where Daisy was feeding one of her twins. He watched as her husband came running from out of the house with three plates. Ash couldn't remember the man's name but he was tall and handsome with long dark purple hair.. And from what Gary had said, he was very kind to Daisy.

Ash was too busy inspecting her husband before he noticed her looking at him, she sweetly smiled and waved. Ash only blushed as he waved back. It'd been years since he'd confessed his undying love for his friend's older sister, and if he thought about it hard enough, he could still feel her lips on his cheek after she gracefully rejected him.

Of course, Daisy was six years older than he was and was now married with three kids. Ash would be lying if he said he hadn't cried for weeks on end leading up to the wedding.

He left his seat at the window and climbed into Gary's bed, turning on the gaming station with one of the controllers. He scrolled through and picked out a game as Gary came back into the room with two plates. "Reggie made peanut butter sandwiches. I brought one up for you in case you wanted some."

He sat up at the mention of food. "Yes please!"

* * *

They'd been playing for only an hour when Gary brought up ideas for the date. "Movies?"

"Everyone goes to the movies for their first date. I want to be different." Ash set down the controller after Gary paused the game. "What did you do for your first date?"

Gary looked at his friend and let out a laugh, "Do you really wanna know?"

"Yes. Please, I need ideas." He rolled over towards Gary.

"We went to Viridian park. We got ice cream. And that was basically it. Her dad was with us the whole time making sure I didn't mack on his daughter even though we were like ten..."

"The park sounds nice…" Ash shrugged. "Do you really think she's gonna care if I'm.. not a good kisser at first? Wouldn't… most girls be flattered if I told her the truth about her being my first?"

"I mean, she could be okay with it, girl like her is hard to tell." He watched Ash ponder over his options.

"... Okay, just one kiss. But we'll never speak of this again." Ash could feel his face turn red, scooting closer to Gary.

* * *

"Okay so, if you're sitting down-" Gary gently took Ash's hands in his own. "You're gonna want her to put her hands here and yours…" He tried to ignore Ash's subtle shaking as he pulled him close and put a hand on Ash's hips. "Right here.. and then.."

Ash let out a noise the second Gary's lips touched his own. The kiss felt nice, it felt good as Gary continued gently kissing him. His hands were clasped behind Gary's neck, but he found they felt more natural on his shoulders. After a moment, the slow kiss got heavier when Ash got bold and pulled Gary close.

* * *

Ash didn't know how long they'd been making out, but apart of him didn't even care. Gary was his best friend and now he finally knew why all the girls flocked to the redhead. Gary was an amazing kisser.

So good that he didn't even notice that he was flat on his back until Gary's knee accidentally grazed his crotch. Ash gasped and crawled away panting, doing his best to hide the tent in his jeans. "Oh… wow…. that…"

"Got a bit out of hand." Gary's whole face was red as he also tried to hide his reaction from Ash. "Way out of hand… sorry about that.."

Ash shook his head as he got up to sit at the window. "It's not your fault… I kinda.. held onto you for a while.." He was red when he looked at Gary and… couldn't help but start laughing. "Your hair! Did I do that?" He watched Gary turn to look in the mirror and frantically begin to fix his hair.

"But.. Uh." A pillow in his lap, Gary shrugged. "Dunno Ash. How was that?"

"I….. think I've.. I think I've got it down."

"Good. I think you do too. Now go plan that date and woo her. I want an invite to the wedding." But even as he said that, his heart fell as he watched Ash gather his things and leave the room.

* * *

"It feels so good to finally be going home!" Ash yawned as he headed out of the en-suite, hair damp from his shower. Throwing his towel into the basket in the corner of the room, he sat down on the bed and started pulling on his shoes as his mom finished dressing Shy.

"Yo soy.." Delia said the words slowly as she brushed Shy's wet bangs back and secured them with a butterfly clip.

"Jo so!" Shiloh repeated, her attention on the toy in her hands. Her nurse had finished removing her IV an hour before and they were waiting on Paul to arrive so he could take them home.

"Shiloh."

Shiloh looked up at Amma with big eyes for a moment, thinking that Amma was calling for her, before she turned back to her toy. "Jo so! Jo so!"

Ash just smiled as he finished zipping up his bag and looked over at his mother's patient attempts to teach Shy her mother tongue. "Yo soy Shiloh."

"Jo so... jo so.." Shy's tiny brows furrowed as she looked up at Ash for help. "... Say... o..."

Ash could only smile at her proudly. "Si! Eres Shiloh!" He sat down in front of her and pointed to himself. "Yo soy tú Papa."

"Jo so pa!" Shiloh giggled as she held up her doll.

"No no, yo soy tú papa." He pointed again to himself, and then pointed at her. "Eres Shiloh. Ella es muñeca." He gently took her doll, "Muñeca. Muñeca."

"Mo ka!" She grinned up at him before she turned around and pointed at the doll for Amma. "Mo ka!"

"Si! Yes! Muñeca!" Delia clapped as Shy was handed the doll back. Ash watched as she hugged it.

"Jo so mo ka! Jo so pa!"

Ash just looked up at Delia and shrugged. "We have all the time in the world to teach her. But, it's a good start!"

"What did I miss?" They all looked to the doorway where Paul stood with his keys in hand. "I'm parked in the garage, everyone ready?"

Ash shook his head as he put his bag on the chair next to Shy's diaper bag and Delia's suitcase. "Yes! We're-"

"JO SO!" Shy belted at the top of her tiny lungs, arms out for Paul, doll completely abandoned. "Pa! Pa!"

Paul did as asked and Ash watched as his daughter climbed up into Paul's arms and went limp once she was comfy. "What's jo so?"

"We're teaching her Spanish, now that she can speak, I at least want her to learn the basics. She's trying to say 'yo soy Shiloh.'" Delia reached out and tugged gently at one of Shy's chubby feet.

"No!" She frowned at Delia and hid her face in Paul's chest.

"No? I can't touch your patitas?" She frowned as Shy responded with a 'no!' "Okay. I won't do it again honey. I'm sorry."

Paul nodded and adjusted Shy with one arm before he moved to pick up Delia's suitcase with his other. "Let's go then."

Back at home, Ash carried a very sleepy Shy upstairs and set her down in her crib and gave her a kiss. "Goodnight Corazón. See you in the morning."

After tucking her in he headed back downstairs to find Paul standing in the middle of the doorway, hands in his pockets. "Everything good?" It was then that Ash realized that Paul had never seen the inside of the house.

"Yeah. Yeah everything is fine. Um.. well, this is my house. A little small but it works. Want a quick tour?" Ash held out his arms.

"Sure." He gave Ash a funny look when Ash moved around him and pulled him in the direction of the kitchen.

"One foot there.. and the other there." Ash nudged Paul's feet apart before he stood off to the side. "To your left is the kitchen, and to your right is our living room. You're basically standing in two places at once! We've got a lot of baby stuff but other than that, not much else."

He gave a simple shrug up at Paul before he took his hand and pulled him off back to the entryway so they were looking up the stairs. "To your right is my mom's room. You can't go in there. And up the stairs is the room I share with Shy and our en-suite. It was an attic before my grandparents had my dad and my uncle, but other than that, that's basically it."

"It's.. charming."

"It's small. Compared to your house this is a shed. But it's worked for me and my parents, and now for me, my mom and Shy." Ash sighed as he looked up at Paul.

"It's a nice house Ash. A house is a house. I haven't seen houses much bigger around here anyways, it fits the town." Paul moved in the direction of the kitchen again. "Any water?"

"Yeah! In the fridge!" Ash followed after him and sat at the table next to Shy's high chair. "Cups are in the cabinet above the sink."

"Do you want some?"

"No thank you." Ash watched Paul pour himself a cup of water and stand against the countertop near the microwave and he noticed that it was already past midnight. "Oh, it's almost one! I didn't realize how late it was."

Paul took a quick glance at his watch before he finished his cup. "You're right. I should be going. I just wanted to make sure everyone got settled, I know it's been a long week for you." He set the cup in the sink.

"Thank you… you didn't have to.. we would have been fine.." Ash got up to wash the cup quickly before putting it on the rack to dry. "I'd offer for you to stay but, I don't think my couch will be very comfortable.."

His breath caught when Paul pulled him close for a moment, "It's alright. I wouldn't want to impose anyways." A quick kiss and he pulled back, leaving Ash's head spinning until he spotted his mother standing in the living room.

"Mom!" Ash pushed Paul away, heat spreading across his cheeks as she just wagged her brows at him and continued into the kitchen.

"Oh don't mind me you two. I'm just getting some water." She poured herself a glass, "Paul? Are you staying for the night?"

"No Ma'am." Paul shook his head as he walked for the front door. "I was just saying my goodbyes for tonight."

"Well why not? Ash has a perfectly fine bed. It's such a long drive from Pallet to Viridian, I'd feel so much better if you stayed the night instead of drive all the way back while tired." She set her cup down as Ash turned back to look at her with a pleading face.

"Um.." Paul shifted as he looked between the both of them, just barely catching Delia's smug look at Ash.

"Really Paul, it's no problem. You've done so much for us all week, at least let us return the favor. I'll make you breakfast in the morning too."

And Ash felt like screaming when he heard Paul's car lock. "Thank you Mrs. Ketchum. You're very kind." He watched as Paul locked both doors behind him and remove his shoes.

"It's my pleasure. Goodnight sweetie, goodnight Paul." Ash gave her a kiss on the cheek as she made her way back to her room and closed her door.

* * *

After locking up for the night and making sure all the lights were off, Ash slowly led Paul up the stairs. "And this is me and Shy's room…" he whispered softly as he opened the door. In the moonlight that came from the window, Shy could be seen asleep in her crib. "My bed's right here…" Ash pointed to the full bed in the corner.

"... You weren't kidding when you said your room was small.." Ash looked back to see Paul crouching, his hand above him on the ceiling to make sure he didn't bang his head and Ash almost wanted to laugh.

"Yeah, yeah it's definitely not height friendly. I'm like, five-two so it doesn't bother me much…" He trailed off as he watched Paul close the door behind him and started to undress.

He slowly removed his own clothes just down to his underwear before climbing in, making sure to leave enough space. Ash gulped as Paul scooted his way in. "Small bed too." Paul chuckled, "My feet are hanging off."

Ash bit his lip to stop himself from laughing. "Really?" He scooted down and felt around with a socked foot to confirm that Paul's feet were, in fact, hanging off.

"Yes really." He cleared his throat as Paul pulled him close, face just inches away from his own. He moved Ash around the bed so that he was able to bend his legs. With the position they ended in, Ash could feel Paul pressed up against his back, one of the man's arms wrapped under him and the other with a hand resting on his hip.

Ash blushed as he felt the man's breath against his neck, "Paul….. my baby is like five feet away… so.."

"Ash, I'm not trying to have sex with you. I am just trying to get comfortable. Yes, the last few times we've shared a bed we've had sex but this time…" Paul didn't finish, pressing gentle kisses to Ash's neck, the hand gently gripping on his hip to pull him closer. "I just want to sleep."

"..Sorry.. I just assumed. My mom desperately wants more grandkids and she is hellbent on getting them.." Ash could feel his face turning red, thankful he wasn't facing Paul.

"I could definitely tell.. but.. I am not going to have sex with you here. The walls are too thin and plus.. I don't think this bed can handle you." He pressed a kiss to Ash's shoulder. "You're an animal."

"I am not!" Ash shrieked in horror before he put his hands over his mouth and listened to see if he woke up Shy. A few soft snores later and he sighed with relief. "I am not an animal." He whispered. "You're the animal."

"I'm teasing, calm down." He kissed Ash once more. "Come on, let's get to bed. It's late."

* * *

Morning came with high giggles, Ash yawned and turned over to see that Shy and Paul were already awake. "Good morning." He watched as Paul playfully tickled Shy, making her giggle her little head off. "How long have you two been awake?"

"About an hour. She woke me up to let me know she needed to be changed, after that, she didn't want to go back in her crib so I just brought her back to bed with me." He smiled softly at her and let her go as she crawled over to Ash and into his arms. "We didn't want to wake you up just yet."

"Buenos dias, Corazón." He gave her a kiss and looked at Paul. "Thank you for taking care of her."

Paul just shrugged as he moved to give Ash a quick kiss while Shy tried out a new word. "Bueno! Bueno!" She grinned up at Ash, "Bueno Pa!"

"Good job Shiloh!" The tiny 'buenos' continued all the way until breakfast where Delia had spent all morning in the kitchen.

* * *

"So Paul?" Delia smiled over at him as she started eating. "I've been meaning to ask… Where are you from? That accent isn't from around here." Ash shot Delia a look and sat up as Paul put down his fork.

"Eastern Sinnoh. Veilstone City." Paul said simply.

"Sinnoh? You're a long way from home huh?"

"I've actually been living here for about a year now. I finished school in Viridian, and just.. never left. The city is beautiful, Veilstone is a cold city, it's nice to wake up and not have to shovel snow out of the driveway."

"Well, it snows pretty bad here too, February's only just getting started." Ash turned from where he was feeding Shy a piece of egg. "That's when winter hits us the worst."

Paul nodded, "Noted."

"Do you have any family back home in Sinnoh?" Delia finished her plate and headed for the kitchen.

"Yes, my parents and my siblings. I have two." Paul also finished his plate, "Thank you for breakfast Mrs. Ketchum. Now if you'll excuse me.." He nodded to them all and they watched as he walked through the back door and once again, began to speak in a language that Ash couldn't quite understand until it clicked.

 _He was giving his thanks for the meal._ He looked over at Delia who was also watching Paul outside.

"Mom he's praying! Mom did we say grace? We didn't bless the food!.." And the look on Delia's face was one of pure terror as they both began to quickly pray crossing themselves and Shiloh, who giggled at the both of them. " _Señor, Tú que das el agua a los campos, la tierra a las plantas, el fruto a los hombres, danos bendito este alimento, para que vuelto fortaleza, te podamos servir mejor. Así sea. Bendícenos, Señor, y estos alimentos que vamos a recibir de tu generosidad por Tú Señor. Gracias Señor por este día. Gracias Señor por mi familia. Gracias Señor por esta comida. Yo te doy mi corazón. Amén!_ "

"Woah." Sometime during their rushed prayer, Paul had re-entered the house. "That was some particularly violent praying." And they both blushed as he started laughing. "Sorry, sorry. I just walked back in and you guys were speaking so fast and so loud it sounded like you were fighting with each other."

"Well…" Ash began. "We usually bless the food before we eat.. We forgot to do that.. And then you started praying and we.."

"We freaked out." Delia sighed as she sat down at the table.

Paul nodded quietly. "Well, I hate to tell you two this, but you definitely prayed before we ate." The grin on his face was the widest Ash had ever seen and for a moment, Ash was starstruck at just how handsome he was. "I'm sorry if I made you second-guess yourself. I'm jewish. We pray after the meal, at least, that's how my mother taught us."

They both looked at him before silently nodding. "Well, I'm sure God won't mind that we double blessed." Delia shrugged, crossing her chest as Paul began to wash his dishes.

* * *

"Do you really have to go?" Ash pouted as Shy was handed off to him on the porch.

"I'm afraid so. Don't worry though. I'll see you later." Paul smiled at him softly and kissed him and then gave Shy a kiss before he made his way to his car.

"When's later?" He bounced Shy in his arms gently, cooing to her as she reached out for Paul, on the brink of tears.

"How about dinner? I'll take all of you guys out."

"Sounds good to me!" He waved as Paul backed out of the driveway and left, and in his arms Shy began to scream. "Oh baby, don't cry. He'll be back soon." He carried her inside and did his best to calm her.

Delia walked out of the room, her arms open and reaching for Shy. "What happened? I haven't seen her cry like this in months." Ash handed her off and watched as Shy finally calmed down and sniffled, tears pouring down her cheeks.

"She's just mad that Paul left."

"Oh?" Delia looked at Shy and frowned. "You and me both sweetheart."

* * *

"Oh Ash? Did you hear? Gary's home." Delia smiled at him as she took off her sun hat. "I just saw him pull onto the driveway next door so I'm sure he'll be here any minute now!"

Ash hadn't even gotten a chance to respond to her as the front door opened wide. In the doorway stood his best friend from childhood. "Hey Ashy-boy." Gary grinned at him, "Long time no see.." Shy stopped bouncing in her chair and they both looked at the redhead.

"Hey… Gary…" He watched Gary's eye travel from him to Shiloh and back to him. "When.. did you get-"

"And who is this adorable little girl?" Gary dropped his bag, his voice taking on a sweet tone as he made a bee-line for Shy, who now had her hands raised to be picked up. "Ash? Why didn't you tell me about her? Where's Mav? I didn't see her car in the driveway."

Out of the corner of his eye Ash could see his mother's head pop out of the kitchen at just the utterance of _her_ name. "We... uh.. about that.." Ash took Shy from Gary. "We have a lot to catch up on…"

* * *

The local ice cream shop was quiet and Ash didn't know where to start. He slowly fed Shiloh spoonfuls of cherry sorbet. Gary was sitting across from him. "Maeve broke up with me…. After she had Shiloh. I didn't really wanna say anything because, well, you were away at college and that's not something you just send over text."

"I mean, I guessed as much by the look on your face. What happened?" Gary sighed.

"A lot."

"Like?"

He shrugged. "It was just a lot Gary. I don't even know what happened but she just.. She left one day and she didn't come back, Shy was only like two weeks old. Two weeks. I don't even care about it anymore."

"Come on Ash, you know you can talk to me."

Ash took in a deep breath, "My dad died before Shy was born. That was one of the reasons I guess, but it wasn't like I completely forgot about her when he died. You remember how she was."

Gary went silent and Ash had to turn away from the green eyes that just stared at him, "I'm… sorry.. What happened Ash?"

"I… You know he'd been sick for a while Gare," He couldn't even bring himself to look at his friend. He fed Shiloh another spoon and he felt a boot run up his leg under the table. "It was intentional. We had just come back from her OB appointment, we'd finally found out that Shy was a girl."

"And then?"

Ash took in a deep breath as he looked out the window. "Well mom was at work so it was just me and her. You know that part of the ceiling that shoots up real high?"

"Ash…."

"We still have the dent on the staircase where the ladder fell. I was the first one in the door, and with the way the stairs are.." He shook his head and closed his eyes, doing his best to push the memory out of his head.

Despite it only being the three of them in the shop, along with the two workers who had left on break, it seemed as if everything went quiet.

"Jesus Ash.." Gary reached his hand across the table, looking a bit _too_ hurt when Ash yanked his hand back.

"Anyways. I didn't know she'd leave me right after. I don't even know what I did. She just. Left while I was at work, I came home and my mom was angrily making dinner and Shy was asleep on the couch in her car seat." He fed her another spoon and finished off the rest, getting up to throw away the cup.

"She was gonna take Shy?"

"Yeah. My mom came home from work and she had almost gotten Shy in the car and my mom fought with her. It's been months since but I'm surprised she hasn't.. like... filed custody claims..."

Gary could only look at Ash in disbelief, "I knew it. You never should have even asked her out Ash. She was always too much for you." Gary laughed, "At this point, the only person who will treat you right is me."

Ash looked at Gary and blinked before he just shook his head. And again, he caught Gary's hurt response. "I'm in a relationship, Gary. You're my best friend, and I love you, but I don't love you in that way."

"Oh." Gary finished his ice cream and sucked his teeth. "When did that happen?"

"Recently.. Like a month ago recent." He gauged Gary's reaction to the news. The news that his best friend in the whole world was attracted to him wasn't a shock. After their kiss he'd seen the looks that Gary would give him, and the way Gary'd acted the longer his relationship with _her_ had gone on. Ash wasn't blind to it, he thought Gary would be over it by now.

"Who is it?" And he knew exactly what Gary was asking.

"His name is Paul. And he's… it's only been a month, but I really do like him." He locked eyes with Gary, and he could see all of the emotions his friend was going through, mulling over the information. "I'm not gay Gary. I didn't expect him to come into my life."

"No no you're not gay Ash. I know you're not gay. Obviously we both like women but the thing is, is that ever since we kissed you've _known_ that I have had feelings for you. This is three years going Ash." His hand came down a bit too hard on the table next to Ash's hand and he adjusted, Shy jumped, startled, but stayed quiet in her seat.

Ash took a deep breath and bit his lip. "Yeah Gary, it's been three years but it's also been three years that you've been gone. You _left_ me here in Pallet when I told you that I wasn't going to go to college with you. And you're mad at me because I didn't dump her for you? Where have you been for the last three years? I know you took breaks over the summer."

His friend huffed and shook his head, his arms crossed.

"We would have never worked Gary. You were my best friend and I needed you. You were gone and I needed you here. You never once even reached out to me these last few years." He felt a tiny hand on his jacket and Ash reached out to rub Shy's cheek. She hummed softly as he lifted her out and hugged her to his chest and Gary's demeanor softened instantly as she waved at him.

Ash sat Shy down on the table in front of him and began playing with her.. "She's taking classes in Viridian."

"Huh?" Ash looked away from Shiloh, back at Gary.

"Mav. She's taking classes. I saw her in my advanced physics class. She told me what happened." Gary sat back, his hands in his pockets.

And for a moment, Ash couldn't believe that. "What? She told you? You knew?"

"I came home for you Ash. But I wanted to give you time to get over her. Guess I got here too late though, but you have my number if things don't work out with this Paul guy." He smirked at Ash, and he wasn't able to stop the scoff that came from his throat.

"Gary.. did you not just hear a thing I said? We," He pointed between them, "Are never going to happen. It's never going to work out. You can I can be friends, but we'll never be anything more than that."

Gary frowned at him, "I don't want to be your friend Ash." And the anger in his voice was enough to make Shiloh sniffle. "I'm not gonna just let you go like I did with Mav."

"Papa mal! Mal!" They both looked towards Shy, who was scooting her way into Ash, brown eyes filled with tears. "Casa. Casa." Ash wrapped an arm around her and kissed her forehead.

"Okay mama." He scooted out of his seat and kissed her cheek, pulling on her hood and adjusted her scarf so she wouldn't get cold. "Shiloh doesn't like you. So as far as I'm concerned, Gary, I don't either." And he didn't give even give his old friend the chance to respond, grabbing her nappy bag and hurried out of the shop and down the road that led home.

* * *

He'd just made it home when the slow snow started, the snow alone didn't bother him, what bothered him was how weird his house looked. Ash couldn't quite put his finger on it but he hurried inside with Shiloh where Delia was waiting for him, his father's shotgun in her hands.

"Mom-"

"Ash honey, there's men in the field." Delia put down the gun and reached for Shiloh. "They wanna talk to your dad, I've already tried to get them to leave.."

Through the glass doors out back, Ash could see a balding blonde haired man and a group of workers with him. "Okay." He gave Shiloh a kiss and handed her off, Delia hugged Shiloh tight and locked the front door behind Ash after he dropped Shy's nappy bag and grabbed the gun instead. "You two stay inside. I'll be back."

"Be careful honey.." Delia just looked at him, and he could see how upset she was by the look on her face. She hadn't spoken about his father, and Ash never made her.

Once outside, Ash locked the door behind him, the gun raised and pointed right at the bald man. Ash recognized Viren as soon as he turned around. He took a deep breath and stepped down the back porch. "This is private property."

Viren took one look at Ash and laughed. "Are you Sebastian Ketchum?" Ash's heart skipped a beat at his father's name. "I have some business to discuss."

Squaring his shoulders, Ash stepped closer with the gun, making the other men around Viren take a step back, but not Viren. "I'm Sebastian Ketchum. I've heard all about you. You want my land."

"Well, you're a smart man aren't you. With an accent like that, you could have fooled me." Viren laughed, Ash could hear what had to be years of smoking in the man's laugh. "Yeah. I want your land. According to public records, you've got about fifteen acres you're not using."

"It's winter dumbass. None of us are using our fields." Ash bit, and Viren blinked at him, surprised by his answer. "It's not for sale. Not to you, not to anyone. No amount of money is gonna make me sell, so you take your happy ass and go back to the city." He took a step closer, his finger on the trigger as Viren finally took a step back with his hands up.

"Alright. That's fair. I'll be back with an amount you can't say no to." Ash watched as the workers hurried for their fancy cars. Viren smiled at Ash as he began to walk away, and Ash followed him, pressing the barrel into Viren's back.

"Get the _fuck_ off my land. I know my rights and I have a lawyer. Come back here and I will not hesitate to shoot you on sight." With a final push, Ash dropped the gun and watched Viren get into his car, the same annoying smirk on his face.

Once they were all gone Ash took in a heavy breath and headed inside where his mother was sitting at the table in tears, Shiloh asleep on the couch.

"This is your father's childhood home Ash." He unloaded the gun and locked it before putting it back up above the door.

"I know Mama."

"This is all we have left of him. He's gonna try to take it, I can feel it."

He put a hand on her shoulder and hugged her.

"No one's gonna take our house Mama."

* * *

WOO! THIS ONE.. IS A LONG ONE.. I did my BEST. Thank you for sticking with me for so long while I chug away at this fic! As you can probably tell by now, my Ash is _Hispanic/Japanese._ I've always headcanon'd Ash this way so I'm finally putting it to good use. Paul is _Ashkenazi Jew/Japanese._ Thanks for coming to my TedTalk.

 **Yo Soy - I am.**

 **Si - Yes**

 **Eres - You are**

 **Tu - You/Your**

 **Ella - She**

 **Muñeca - Doll**

 **Corazón. - Heart**

 **Buenos Días - Good Morning**

 **Señor, Tú que das el agua a los campos, la tierra a las plantas, el fruto a los hombres, danos bendito este alimento, para que vuelto fortaleza, te podamos servir mejor. Así sea. Bendícenos, Señor, y estos alimentos que vamos a recibir de tu generosidad por Tú Señor. Gracias Señor por este día. Gracias Señor por mi familia. Gracias Señor por esta comida. Yo te doy mi corazón. Amén -**

 **Lord, You who give the water to the fields, the earth to the plants, the fruit to men, give us this food blessed, so that we become strong, we can serve you better. So be it. Bless us, Lord, and these foods that we will receive from your generosity for Your Lord. Thank you Lord for this day. Thank you Lord for my family. Thank you Lord for this meal. I give you my heart. Amen**

(This is the typical Spanish prayer that me and my family use when we are blessing our food.)


End file.
